I have been doing genealogy research for well over a decade, and I have to say that one of my biggest problems by far is my lackadaisical approach to citing sources. It's not that I don't think citing sources is important. It's extremely important. I just get sidetracked when I'm researching and don't always write down where I found a particular document or fact.

This book is a wonderful resource for people like me. Take this book with you on your library trips! If you use the information presented in the book every time, you won't have to duplicate your work to go back and document your sources after the fact.

This book is a style guide/handbook for citation and analysis for a genealogist. The first part focuses outlines the basics of each, while the second part shows examples of formatting your citations.

Unfortunately, I didn't find this as useful as I'd hoped. The citation suggestions are primarily for a family historian or a genealogist hoping to publish their work. Though she gives some examples of citations on a family group sheet or an ancestral chart, much less time is spent discussing how to analyze records. As a beginner just starting to look into my genealogy and not currently planning publication, I need a little more hand-holding than this provided. Others have mentioned the lack of online citation examples - the book was published in 1997 before there were clear standards for online citations, but as I have done primarily online searches, I would find it much more useful to have those clearly explained as well. I will definitely be able to use her examples of cited family group sheets, but I will continue my search for an introduction to analysis of records. ( )

friend, mentor, fellow Mississippian,and fellow Fellow of the American Society of Genealogists

who was inspired bya modest article of my ownto createCite Your Sources(New Orleans: Polyanthos, 1980),a pathbreaking work that has guided a generation of genealogists.

In the seventeen years since that manual appeared,the tools and practices of our field have changedtremendously. Had Richard's death not soonfollowed his publication, his manualcould—and, I'm sure, would—havekept abreast.

As I tender this replacement to our field,I do so with regret that Richard is not hereto make my effort unneccessary—and with a fresh senseof life's tendency to close its circles.

First words

IntroductionSince its publication in 1981, Richard Lackey's Cite Your Sourceshas been praised, panned, and misunderstood. But it has been used..

Fundamentals of citation . . . . . . . . .

Ancestors. Where did they come from? Who produced them?These are the most basic questions that genealogists ask. These are also the questions we must ask of our information. Where did it come from? Who produced it?